Healthy habits, Giving, Gratitude, Grateful, Good, Blessings

Why Aren't We More Grateful?

In our hustle-bustle world of instant everything, gratitude and thankfulness often get squeezed out. You’d think with all we have we’d be more grateful! Instead, we find it so easy to take for granted our many blessings and comforts. In this message, we find practical ways from the Bible to cultivate sincere, consistent thankfulness in our lives and learn how to move past discontentment and entitlement and let your needs and blessings prompt you to draw closer to God.

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MESSAGE NOTES

[Luke 17:11-19]

11 As Jesus continued on toward Jerusalem, he reached the border between Galilee and Samaria. 12 As he entered a village there, ten men with leprosy stood at a distance, 13 crying out, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” 14 He looked at them and said, “Go show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed of their leprosy. 15 One of them, when he saw that he was healed, came back to Jesus, shouting, “Praise God!” 16 He fell to the ground at Jesus’ feet, thanking him for what he had done. This man was a Samaritan. 17 Jesus asked, “Didn’t I heal ten men? Where are the other nine? 18 Has no one returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?” 19 And Jesus said to the man, “Stand up and go. Your faith has healed you.”

 

  1. OBEDIENCE PRECEDES THE BLESSING

 

[1 Kings 5:11-12]

But Naaman became angry and stalked away. “I thought he would certainly come out to meet me!” he said. “I expected him to wave his hand over the leprosy and call on the name of the Lord his God and heal me! 12 Aren’t the rivers of Damascus, the Abana, and the Pharpar, better than any of the rivers of Israel? Why shouldn’t I wash in them and be healed?” So Naaman turned and went away in a rage.

 

“All ten were willing to do a religious ceremony; that is go to the priest. Only one was
filled with true praise and thanksgiving. “External religious exercises are easy enough,
and common enough; but the internal matter, the drawing out of the heart in thankful
love, how scarce a thing it is! Nine obey ritual where only one praises the Lord.”
⁃ Charles Spurgeon

 

Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine? Jesus missed the nine who did
not return to give thanks. He marveled that they did not return to give Him thanks.
Jesus also notices our lack of gratitude.
⁃ David Guzik

 

“When he saw that he was healed, instead of going forward to the priest, to be by him
declared clean, and so discharged from his confinement, which was all that the rest
aimed at, he turned back towards him who was the Author of his cure, whom he
wished to have the glory of it, before he received the benefit of it.”
⁃ Matthew Henry

 

[Deuteronomy 8:10-14]

10 When you have eaten your fill, be sure to praise the Lord your God for the good land he has given you. 11 “But that is the time to be careful! Beware that in your plenty you do not forget the Lord your God and disobey his commands, regulations, and decrees that I am giving you today. 12 For when you have become full and prosperous and have built fine homes to live in, 13 and when your flocks and herds have become very large and your silver and gold have multiplied along with everything else, be careful! 14 Do not become proud at that time and forget the Lord your God, who rescued you from slavery in the land of Egypt.

 

Your faith has made you well: There was an extra healing for this tenth leper. When
Jesus said this, He likely meant God’s work within the man’s heart. The other lepers
had whole bodies, but sick hearts.
⁃ David Guzik

 

2. ALL OF US ARE IN NEED

 

3. WE WORSHIP IN RESPONSE TO OUR NEEDS AND OUR BLESSINGS

 

[Matthew 26:27-29]

27 And he took a cup of wine and gave thanks to God for it. He gave it to them and said, “Each of you drink from it, 28 for this is my blood, which confirms the covenant between God and his people. It is poured out as a sacrifice to forgive the sins of many. 29 Mark my words—I will not drink wine again until the day I drink it new with you in my
Father’s Kingdom.”

 

“Most interestingly, when we compared those who wrote the gratitude letters with
those who didn’t, the gratitude letter writers showed greater activation in the medial
prefrontal cortex when they experienced gratitude in the fMRI scanner. This is striking
as this effect was found three months after the letter writing began. This indicates that
simply expressing gratitude may have lasting effects on the brain. While not conclusive,
this finding suggests that practicing gratitude may help train the brain to be more
sensitive to the experience of gratitude down the line, and this could contribute to
improved mental health over time.”
⁃ Joshua Brown & Joel Wong

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Application Questions

  1. What stood out to you from this message and why?
  2. What is one thing God is telling you to START doing because of this message?
  3. What is one thing God is telling you to STOP doing because of this message?
  4. How will this message change how you act at home, at work, and in your relationships?

In our hustle-bustle world of instant everything, gratitude and thankfulness often get squeezed out. You’d think with all we have we’d be more grateful! Instead, we find it so easy to take for granted our many blessings and comforts. In this message, we find practical ways from the Bible to cultivate sincere, consistent thankfulness in our lives and learn how to move past discontentment and entitlement and let your needs and blessings prompt you to draw closer to God.

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